Ms Korsnick did not mention specific operators or plants, but said nuclear operators were stockpiling ready-to-eat meals and disposable tableware, laundry supplies and personal care items.
Media reports said the US electric industry may ask essential staff to live onsite at power plants and control centres to keep operations running if the coronavirus outbreak worsens.
The contingency plans, if enacted, would mark an unprecedented step by power providers to keep their workers healthy as both private industry and governments scramble to minimise the impact of the global pandemic that has infected more than 227,000 people worldwide.
“The focus needs to be on things that keep the lights on and the gas flowing,” said Scott Aaronson, vice-president of security and preparedness at the Edison Electric Institute, the nation’s biggest power industry association. He said that some “companies are already either sequestering a healthy group of their essential employees or are considering doing that and are identifying appropriate protocols to do that.”
Nuclear reactors are considered critical infrastructure by the federal government. The US Department of Homeland Security is charged with coordinating plans to keep them operational during an emergency.
